By Sue Bolton and Sandra Wallace
The All Burma Students' Democratic Organisation (Australia) organised protests in several Australian cities on May 27. The actions marked the anniversary of the 1990 general election in Burma which was won by the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Daw Aung San Su Kyi. The ruling military junta, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), refused to allow the NLD to take government.
Over the last few weeks, prior to the NLD's first official conference since 1990, many members of the party have been arrested and jailed. The NLD has condemned the government's actions and called for a new constitution.
In Melbourne, the protesters called on the international community to: impose international trade sanctions and a worldwide arms embargo on Burma; affect the immediate and unconditional release of all political detainees including students, clergy and more than 265 political dissidents recently detained in Burma; and exercise effective measures and adequate pressures on the SLORC to honour the 1990 election result.
In Sydney, the protesters specifically condemned the involvement of Australian companies in Burma and called for a boycott of tourism to Burma. The SLORC is currently seeking to attract tourists, and the development of tourism infrastructure has involved super-exploitation of Burmese working people, including the creation of slave labour gangs to work on hotel and road construction.
The Sydney action was held outside the offices of Transgrid, a company with substantial investments in Burma and ties with the SLORC.